Artemis Fowl: To Each His Own
by FireBlood Sentry
Summary: An old nemesis has returned, under the influence of pure evil. Artemis is faced with this nemesis' challenge, strings being pulled from behind the scenes. Will this old nemesis outwit him through the work of pure evil?
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Dripping... Dripping...

Every drop of water feeding on his anger, his hatred, his resentment toward the boy. He watched the water trickle slowly from the ceiling to the floor, passing the slivers of light slipping through the barred window. For three months, he had been here, simmering in his own loathing, and his own self-pity.

"Fowl..." He hissed, madness creeping into his tone. Before long, he will be consumed in that madness, his wrath taking hold, reducing him to nothing more than a vengeful puppet, pulled along the strings of Death himself... or someone who played the part.

For another grueling two hours he seethed, trying to form a plan of revenge with the last dregs of his sanity... before he was hauled completely into lunacy.

And at that moment of complete yielding, an encouraging voice echoed from an umbrageous corner of the prison cell...

_ Mister Spiro... _The voice coaxed, it's horrible rasp masked by the beautiful tone of the _mesmer_.

_ Your time is at hand._


	2. Chapter 1: Unjust Retribution

**Chapter 1: Unjust Retribution**

**Haven, The Lower Elements**

"So let me get this straight, Foaly... Chix Verbil... went missing? Just like that?"

She heard the centaur sigh on the other end of the communicator. "Yes, Holly, just like that. The last he appeared on my monitors was when he was at the ritual site. Then everything went blank. Flares went up."

Holly sighed and sat back down on her office chair. Chix Verbil had been missing for more than a day and the flares had subsided but there was still static from Chix's helmet on the surface.

"So you're telling me, the great genius Foaly... can't locate him because of a malfunction?"

The centaur sighs again. "Yes, Holly, rub it in my face, the great Foaly can't locate this particular fairy.

"But that's why I contacted YOU."

There was silence awhile as a question formed in Holly's mind. "So the LEP can't look out for their own?"

"That's the problem." Holly heard keys tapping on the other end of the line. Foaly took the liberty of letting her hear the recorded argument between Sool and Foaly himself. "Sool's become too power-crazy to understand the value of his own men." Foaly remarked, failing to keep the resentment from his voice. "He says it's a waste of time and resources to hunt down a single fairy."

"But isn't that the whole point of recon?" Holly added, getting more annoyed at this new commander by the second.

She heard an angry but triumphant whinny at the other end. "THANK YOU. That is EXACTLY what i've been trying to say!!! Too bad that's not important to Sool. Lately, he's been trying to protect his reputation more than the LEP."

Holly resisted the urge to slam her head into her desk and contented herself with burying her face in her hands and sighing into them. "Do we have any leads?"

"Well—"

A soft beep interrupted Foaly's train of thought... and a long silence followed as Foaly's fingers tapped the keys. Finally, after a few long moments, Foaly's perturbed voice broke the silence. "Holly... you... might want to see this."

oOo

**Police Plaza, LEP Operations Booth**

Foaly had gotten Holly a civilian's pass to the Operations Booth in Police Plaza. In moments, Holly arrived at the plaza making sure Mulch had something else to do while she was away.

She tried to psych herself for what was coming to greet her at Foaly's Operations Booth... But nothing could ready her for what it was or what would come afterward.

Foaly sat Holly down as he opened the communicator line. What Holly saw triggered a mix of emotions, ranging from shock to pure blinding rage.

On the other end of the line sat Verbil, scared, shocked and paralyzed. His voice came out weak and fearful. "H-Holly...?"

"Chix, we'll get you out of there, we—"

Her voice was lost as the camera swiveled to reveal Chix Verbil's captor. A familiar but disturbing sight.

"Artemis...?"

"Greetings, Detective."

oOo

Artemis' smug expression was enough to send chills down her spine. His gaze, cold and calculating, was not the gaze that she saw before they parted ways three months before. "Artemis... why? What will you gain from this?"

She was answered by a somewhat mischevious chuckle, with a distinct malicious undertone.

"Detective," Holly cringed at the formal addressing, "What is a human to gain from a poor, innocent, frightened little fairy?"

Holly's eyes narrowed in thought. Then widened at the realization. "Information."

"Correct." Artemis smiled almost warmly as he swiveled the camera back toward his victim, now positioning himself behind him and resting a chin on his tiny shoulder. "But unfortunately, Mr. Verbil here has seen more than what he should have."

Verbil gasped audibly as a sharp glint of steel caressed his neck. "H-HOLLY!!!"

"SILENCE." Threatened Artemis, the blade drawing ever closer to Verbil's throat.

Holly stood incredulous at the sight. "Artemis, no, don't do this..."

A small sliver of light passed the dimness inside the room the captor and captive were in and flashed across Artemis' eyes to make them beastly red. The boy's smile seemed to have a savage, voracious air.

"One fairy's life for a human's future."

And in one quick crimson flash, Chix Verbil... was gone.


End file.
